The UN was established to ensure that the nations of the world would never again engage in another world war. Following WWII there were two waves of peacekeepers sent to the Congo as a result of the oil struggle. War is the absence of peace, but what happens when you send heroes there to preserve the peace are forced to proceed with the war. At this point one cannot idly stand by and leave men to die, or can they? This is what happened in 1961 in the Congo.The 35th Platoon from Ireland surrendered after four days of siege to the Katanga Gendarmerie troops loyal to the Katangese Prime Minister Moise Tshombe. The 35th Platoon of Irish peacekeepers fought amazingly for any army. They faced shortages of water, food and ammo, while suffering
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In the newly formed Republic of the Congo, the west and east were battling for control of Katanga. Patrice Lumumba, the elected ambassador, was assassinated by President Tshombe and his men. The Republic of the Congo was responsible for providing over half of the world's copper and cobalt, two crucial minerals to the United States and the USSR weapontry departments at the time. As the superpowers of the world fought for more power over these mines, they played little to no attention about how dangerous the situation was becoming in the Congo. The Conflict then eventually leads to the call of Irish Peacekeepers. The UN sent One Hundred and fifty-eight inexperienced men”war virgins” to protect the small town of Jadotville Jadotville was the main mining sector for the uranium used in the two bombs created to attack Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and would prove to be a very critical asset to the plans of the Katangese troops. Upon arrival, Irish Peacekeepers were treated with anything but respect, they were unwanted and considered unneeded by President Tshombe. Among the one hundred and fifty-eight men sent to the congo was Commandant Pat Quinlan, and though he had never been to war he was especially knowledgeable in war tactics, the other man working to lead the 35th Infantry Battalion at Jadotville was Sergeant Jack Prendergast. These are just two of the many dedicated and adaptive
In the newly formed Republic of the Congo, the west and east were battling for control of Katanga. Patrice Lumumba, the elected ambassador, was assassinated by President Tshombe and his men. The Republic of the Congo was responsible for providing over half of the world's copper and cobalt, two crucial minerals to the United States and the USSR weapontry departments at the time. As the superpowers of the world fought for more power over these mines, they played little to no attention about how dangerous the situation was becoming in the Congo. The Conflict then eventually leads to the call of Irish Peacekeepers. The UN sent One Hundred and fifty-eight inexperienced men”war virgins” to protect the small town of Jadotville Jadotville was the main mining sector for the uranium used in the two bombs created to attack Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and would prove to be a very critical asset to the plans of the Katangese troops. Upon arrival, Irish Peacekeepers were treated with anything but respect, they were unwanted and considered unneeded by President Tshombe. Among the one hundred and fifty-eight men sent to the congo was Commandant Pat Quinlan, and though he had never been to war he was especially knowledgeable in war tactics, the other man working to lead the 35th Infantry Battalion at Jadotville was Sergeant Jack Prendergast. These are just two of the many dedicated and adaptive